Episode seven of Stargirl has a different feel to it compared to any other episode so far this season. What makes this normally upbeat series feel different this week is the almost complete absence of the preppy background music instead focusing on darker instrumental music to add to the sense of dread of things to come. This is excellently done as it coincides with the reveal of Cindy Burman’s background story, which admittedly, is much more somber than I was expecting it to be.
It is no shock that Cindy turns out to be the daughter of Injustice Society member Dragon King, but what is a surprise is how much of an actual human with real emotions that Cindy turns out to be. This episode spends a great deal of time showing just how lonely of a character Cindy really is, making her feel much more relatable in the beginning of this episode — more so than she ever was for the first half of the season. Because of her personal life at home, you can almost appreciate how desperately Cindy longs for actual human connection when she latches onto a potential (although unlikely) friendship with Courtney.
Another critical character development for Cindy is the revelation that she is not only aware of her father’s musings as a member of the Injustice Society, but also has a seat at the table herself. She even kills one of her father’s followers in a blink of an eye. Obviously, Cindy is some sort of modified human being; a storyline plot element that I hope is explored further.
Speaking again on Cindy and Courtney’s blossoming friendship, the scene in this episode where both girls are simultaneously arguing with their respective father figure draws some interesting parallels between both characters. Both feel that their parents are not listening to the them and treating them like kids when both feel that they are mature enough to handle much more; Cindy wants to quit high school and join the Injustice Society and Courtney wants a single mission to combat the villains in Blue Valley. With a short scene as powerful as this, I’m looking forward to seeing this explored further as the series continues.
The writing of this series, and this episode in particular, continues to be a pleasant element each week. Last episode Courtney was faced with the challenge of working with her JSA counterparts and them not being mature or ready enough to work as a team. This week, Courtney does exactly what she was so angry with her teammates about — feeling like she knows everything and doesn’t need to listen to Pat’s advice or take his training seriously. When Courtney absolutely gets her butt whooped by Shiv (Cindy) later in the episode is arguably going to be the humbling experience that she needs to move forward as the dynamic team leader the new JSA needs.
The fight scene between Cindy and Courtney in their Shiv and Stargirl personas continues to draw necessary parallels between the two. Their fighting styles are eerily similar, both wield some sort of staff with magic abilities, and neither one is willing to back down. These two will definitely be squaring off again throughout the series and if their next encounter is half as well done as this one is, we will be in for a treat.
Without giving out future spoilers, this episode does a fantastic job giving some more insight into who janitor Justin is. Pay close attention to the scene in the episode where he is in his janitorial closet — tons of Easter eggs here! Janitor Justin is here to stay and adds yet another exciting element to this show.
This is a two-part episode and there are a few elements that will more than likely be addressed next week. Like, will Courtney recover enough to make it to the Homecoming Dance with Jordan’s son Cameron? How will Pat and Barbara handle Courtney’s ‘accident’? What is next for Janitor Justin? Will Cindy comeback for round two and how will the JSA members combat this new threat? And most importantly, Is Michael still eating all the snacks at the football game?
Interested in watching Stargirl? You can catch it Mondays on DC Universe and Tuesdays on the CW.
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